Category Archives: Senegal

Hatch at Achieva…Blue 33 is home…Thursday in Bird World

14 March 2024

Good Morning,

It’s damp and grey but warming up on the Canadian Prairies. I hear that Melbourne got some much-needed rain and cooled off as well. After wishing for winter I am now hoping spring is on its way. There are certainly more and more Canada Geese flying overhead, thinking their timing is right, and the garden centres are encouraging people to get their orders in for late May planting. I am already dreaming about the trees that will arrive and considering getting another one or two very large older trees to add to the mix to benefit the birds and squirrels now.

Latest news: Bravo to those who believed that the third egg at Achieva was laid the morning of the 8th – ‘MP and H’ you were so observant! That third egg hatched today so there will be one little one for Jack and Dianne this year. That is a good thing as far as I am concerned! Jack seemed delighted when he found out.

There is also a second egg at White Rock and one of the Port Tobacco eggs has broken. No embryo seen in that egg.

Missey wishes everyone a wonderful day!

I listened to Dr Alan Poole’s talk on Wednesday. There were four areas that he concentrated on. I will only mention one today and go on to the others tomorrow as I want to find some images. One big problem for Ospreys is food, and their only food is fish. They are the only raptor that exists solely on fish. Poole went directly to the Manhaden ‘problem’. The overfishing of Manhaden in the Chesapeake Bay Area resulted in only three young being produced out of 100 nests last year. Indeed, many ospreys have stopped reproducing. Poole noted that the ‘bottom fell out of Osprey population growth’ in the mid-1990s in the Chesapeake Bay Area due to overfishing. According to Dr Poole, one large net taken by a boat could feed 10,000 ospreys. The Chinese are raising havoc in West Africa, where the UK and European osprey winter. They are given commercial fishing licenses because they provide funds to the various governments of West Africa. The wintering ospreys depend on these fish.


The locals also fish, but that was never an issue for the ospreys. It is the large commercial vessels that use huge nets. They pick up the surface schooling fish that the ospreys like, such as Mullet. Guess where that fish goes? TO FEED CHICKENS AND FARMED SALMON FOR GROCERY STORES. Did you know that most Ospreys die due to being shot by people running fish farms? This is happening at all fish farms, but ospreys are being wiped out in Poland because of the shooting and in various areas of Central and South America. Poole maintains that more ospreys die at fish farms than by any other cause. I have campaigned against the eating of tuna, and now, please avoid farmed salmon. Put the large trawlers out of business. Just stop. We don’t need to eat salmon!

The other three topics were Problem Nests, Restoring Osprey Populations, and using Streaming Cameras for research. I will cover those tomorrow with some comments of my own. Most of us are aware of the overfishing problem and the storms that hit the Northeast US in 2023. Indeed, I am certain that many of you were overwhelmed with the loss of both adults and nestlings, just as I was.

There was a lot of news in Bird World on Wednesday. First, Cal fledged from the Captiva Bald Eagle nest of Connie and Clive in Florida, if you missed it. Lori Covert has said, “​I have spotted Cal flying around several times this afternoon. He seems to be doing well! Connie and Clive are both staying nearby as well! Clive is just a few trees away, and Connie is on top of the watch tower of the beach home across the street, keeping a very close eye on Cal!” Well, that is good news.

The other great news is that Blue 33, Maya’s mate at Rutland Manton Bay, returned home to find his gal fixing up their nest on Wednesday afternoon. Edie lays her second egg at the Captiva Osprey nest as I write this. Thanks, ‘H’!

I suspect that the bobbleheads at the West End are bonking away. Thunder will put an end to it by sitting on them. I am having some big worries Some about the third hatch there. We will wait and see. The nest is certainly different in configuration than when they raised the Three Amigos. This nest cup is small – a real estate agent would call it ‘cosy’.

Tears for Maya and Blue 33. After the Bald Eagle season in the US, there needed to be some gold glimmering down. Blue 33 lands and looks around for his lady.

Maya touches down with a fish at 1536, less than a minute later. She opts not to share.

Oh, he is handsome with those devilish eyes! What a grand provider. These two make a great super osprey team. In 2023, Blue 33 arrived home on the 16th of March and had a bit of friendliness with Blue25 before Maya sent her packing. He is three days earlier in 2024.

Blue NCO works on the nest and scans the skies for the arrival of her mate, Laddie LM12 at Loch of the Lowes.

A pair of gulls decided to rest on the Llyn Brenig Osprey platform in Wales during the rain on Wednesday. In 2023, LJ2 arrived on 31 March with LM6 arriving on 4 April.

It was a beautiful day at Loch Arkaig. Not looking for Louis or Dorcha to arrive yet. In 2023, they set down on 2 April (Louis) and a week later on the 9th Dorcha flew in.

At Poole Harbour, Blue 022 arrived on 26 March with CJ7 returning on 31 March in 2023. Let’s see if this couple arrive early!

The area around Glaslyn is still partially flooded from all the rain they have been having. The cam operator gives almost a 360 view. You can hear the rain hitting the camera! Aran and Elen arrived at the nest on the 3rd of April in 2023.

At the Dyfi nest in Wales, Idris came home on 30 March with Blue 3J Telyn arriving three days earlier on the 27th. We know that Blue 5F Seren has left West Africa. She is always on her same post and has not been seen for about a week. Seren arrived home on 25 March in 2023 with Dylan arriving at Llyn Clywedog on the 27th of March.

There has been some commotion at the Dahlgren nest in the US. Some believed that the bird that had landed on Tuesday was Harriet. Some of us did not think that was the case based on a very close inspection of the head and breast feathers. Today there are three on the nest and what a bit of a fight it was! I guess we wait to see who the resident female will be.

Checking on Eagle Country, Blaze came in with a nice fish for Meadow and Swampy. Meadow did a lot of snatch and grab moving over to protect its head from Swampy. It was interesting to watch. These two have almost completed getting their juvenile feathers.

At SW Florida, E23 is ready to fly. Mum has been filling her baby up today. It felt like every time, he got high in the tree, a prey item was brought to the nest.

It is mostly cloudy in Fort Myers and hot at 28 degrees C. I cannot see any rai he got higher in forecast. That first flight—the fledge—could come this evening.

At the JB Sands Wetlands Eagle nest, JBS20 got a lesson in plucking today. What a magnificent eaglet – huge! Are you thinking a female, too? Look at those legs. My goodness.

I am not even going to speculate as to who ate what and when at the West End nest of Thunder and Akecheta. There is plenty of fish thanks to Dad. That nest cup is small. I am going to give it a few days to make sure I am seeing three beaks open and being filled.

Trudi Kron got this great montage for us of the triplets at the West End.

At Duke Farms, Jersey did stretch its neck to get some nice fish. Both Jersey and Leaper were fed. Both look fine to me, but when the parents were both off the nest, the oldest decided for no reason to tear into the younger sibling.

At Bluff City, both eaglets, Willow and Oliver, had a rabbit breakfast. There was at least one other feeding before 1300 and it looks like Oliver was the only one that ate.

Many are wondering if Jackie and Shadow will have a second clutch. Eagles are only fertile three times a year and for Jackie, the latest this would be is probably April. In order to lay that second clutch, she would have to stop incubating the three eggs in the nest currently.

A trusted observer believes the third egg at Achieva was laid late on the 7th or early on the 8th. If this is the case, the egg is 35 days old today. We should be looking for a pip starting Friday. The egg will be 40 days old on Tuesday and that would mean it is unviable like eggs 1 and 2.

‘M’ tells me that the Venice Golf and Country Club Osprey platform now has three eggs. Thank you and congratulations. I missed it! This is why I need everyone’s eyes!!!!!!

Here is the link to the VGCCO Cam:

Big Red and Arthur were at the Cornell RTH nest today. Arthur bringing in materials and Big Red also bringing in bark. Arthur also brought a prey gift and Big Red put down her nesting materials and took off for a late breakfast. Gosh that egg cup is deep this year!

Lots of mating and nest preparation going on with Angel and Tom, too.

A rare Black-beaked Spoonbill shows up in Hong Kong! There are believed to be fewer than 6000 in existence.

Birdwatch-rare-black-faced-spoonbill-turns-up-in-Hong-Kong-wetland-Birds-The-GuardianDownload

Ever seen the sky dancing of the Buzzard when mating? Enjoy this quick read.

Country-diary-Breeding-buzzards-in-a-stylish-choreographed-dance-Environment-The-GuardianDownload

Thank you so much for being with me today. Please take care! See you soon.

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post this morning: ‘Geemeff, H, J, M’, Achieva Credit Union, Alan Poole, Window to Wildlife, Erica Crowley, Lori Covert, LRTWT, Scottish Wildlife Trust (LOTL), Llyn Brenig, The Woodland Trust (Loch Arkaig), Poole Harbour Osprey Project, Brywd Gwylld Glaslyn, Dahlgren Osprey Cam, Eagle Country, SW Florida Eagle Cam, JB Sands Wetlands, IWS/Explore (West End), Trudi Kron, Duke Farms, Bluff City-ETSU, Johnson City-ETSU, FOBBV, Achieva Credit Union, Cornell RTH Cam, and Lady Hawk.

Thursday in Bird World

8 February 2024

Good Morning,

Don’t look at Hugo Yugo’s eyes. They need to be wiped. You must focus on poor Calico’s eyes. Wonder what she is thinking? She was having such a leisurely nap when, you know who decided they wanted on top of the smallest cat tree with her. 

Hugo Yugo is so proud of herself. Gracious.

Missey and Hope pulled off the table cloth and each of them took turns flipping it about the conservatory. Missey is as wooly as ever.

Once Hope noticed that Hugo Yugo was not around, she settled in nicely at the top of the large cat tree and enjoyed a very blissful time. 

I came home from several appointments to find the streets blocked off and the tree-cutting equipment and men working diligently. The 1902 trees are diseased, but they are also the homes of the squirrels and the woodpeckers who like dead trees. They are also where Mr Crow and his extended family build their nests. I am grateful that no trees were cut down during the nesting season, but I am slightly distraught at how many need to be cut down, and I am wondering where the garden animals will find shelter and nesting places now. We wait to see.

The girls and I are starting a new book. Will keep you posted — and, yes, they still love their story time. It adds to the rhythm of our day. Like the book we are going to read, the birds saved someone’s life – well, these girls and the garden animals certainly top up the quality of my life. I am very thankful for them.

There are a lot of people where I live that envy all that snow in Big Bear. Everyone wants to go skiing and we are having rain! (It is supposed to get colder – I am hoping!). We are 19 days away from pip watch.

Jackie broke the record for incubation. 62 straight hours until she was relieved by Shadow.

This is just too cute not to post. What are all the adjectives we could use? Adorable? Expressive? Not to mention a great attention to detail. That is an amazing sculpture of Jackie and Shadow! 

Jackie and Shadow have the most extensive Bald Eagle streaming cams fan base. Let us all hope that three weeks from now, we will be shouting so loud that if there were people on the moon, they could hear us. I have a tiny bottle of champagne waiting.

Shadow delivered prey. I understand it is still on the nest. He takes over incubation and Jackie enjoys her break. The forecast is for bad weather to return again on Thursday. They can’t get a break!

The Duck that almost didn’t make it for dinner at Eagle Country.

https://www.facebook.com/eaglecountryofficial/videos/25084720337779863

Swampy and Meadow both had a good fish feast on Wednesday. Relief.

Meadow finally gets some nice big bites – after Swampy.

There are fish absolutely everywhere and other remnants of prey at the Eagle Country nest. Surely no one could go hungry here! Meadow has been getting good feedings all day Wednesday.

Little Meadow gets some bites.

No egg at Moorings Park. Gosh, Sally and Harry have fooled everyone!

At Port Lincoln, Gil found some fish on the nest and had a wee bit of a snack before the day began in South Australia.

Checking in at Superbeaks. We are less than two weeks away from the pip watch for the second clutch. In fact, it is only 10 days for the first egg today! Fingers crossed for these two eagles dedicated to raising a family again this year!

There is something to be said about being an only eaglet. R6 (and E23) are robust!

Finally a look at the only surviving eaglet at JB Sands Wetlands in Texas.

Cal and Lusa are so big and their plumage has changed completely into that of a juvenile compared to the little one above at JB Sands.

The cam operator at SW Florida got up close and personal with E23’s feather development. Not long until E23 looks exactly like Cal and Lusa!

It is chilly at the Port Tobacco Eagle nest. Both eagles, Hope and Chan, have been on the nest working on Wednesday regardless – In fact, we must remember that eagles actually prefer cooler weather as opposed to hotter.

It was a beautiful day at Dulles-Greenway but no egg yet.

I sure wish I knew what the distance was from the nest to the water that is flooding around Redding. It looks like it continues to rise significantly.

‘J’ sends us one of Mike Dakar’s images of one of the Centreport Eagles sliding on the ice on Long Island.

Latest post on SE31 from Judy Harrington:

The first Osprey egg has been laid at the Venice Golf and Country Club. Yes!

Oh, I was right. Bonnie was laying her first egg of the GHO season on the nest on Farmer Derek’s land. Congratulations Bonnie and Clyde!

Goodness. That TF Royal Cam Chick is growing like a bad weed on those squid shakes.

Jean-marie Dupart is the energy behind the Osprey counts in Senegal. The fundraising for the binoculars was for his assistants. Read what he does in a day when he is counting. It makes me tired. Thank you for all the hard work, Jean-marie and team!

These beautiful birds in West Africa will begin thinking about migrating back to their spring and summer breeding grounds in the UK and Europe. It is a hazardous journey. Many do not make it. We need to appreciate what they endure. It will help us to celebrate the triumph of their return to the nests.

Migration-Threats-Osprey-TalesDownload
Osprey-Migration-Explained-Avian-ReportDownload

How do they make it over the open seas?

Migrating-ospreys-use-thermal-uplift-over-the-open-sea-Biology-LettersDownload

A beautiful story about Oriental Greenfinches from BirdLife International written by HIH Princess Takamado.

Secret-Story-of-Oriental-Greenfinch-BirdLife-InternationalDownload

‘H’ and I will be adding Osprey nests, eggs, and hatches to our 2024 International Osprey Data Project. I am currently looking for specific information on when the eggs at Pelican Bay were laid and when they hatched. If you happen to know, please send me a comment or a note in an e-mail: maryannsteggles@icloud.com    Last year we monitored 344 eggs. The goal was to establish survival rates and causes of death. I specifically look for siblicide, but last year, weather/starvation and predation were the main causes of death after eggs not hatching. We appreciate information on any nests that are followed and, in particular, those in Europe. Thank you for any information at any time!

Thank you for being with me today. Please take care. We look forward to having you with us again soon.

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, pictures, screen captures, videos, articles, and streaming cams that helped me to write my blog today: ’A, H, J’, FOBBV, Cali Condor, Chelsea Sheehan, Eagle Country, Moorings Park, PLO, Superbeaks, WRDC, JB Sands Wetlands, Window to Wildlife, SW Florida Eagle Cam, Port Tobacco Eagle Cam, Dulles-Greenway, FORE, Mike Dakar, Judy Harrington, Diana Lambertson, Androcat, Sharon Dunne, Jean-marie Dupart, Osprey Tales, Avian Report, BirdLife International, and The Royal Society.

First egg at Achieva, Second egg at Big Bear, Second hatch at JB…Monday in Bird World

29 January 2024

Oh, good morning. Sunday was a marvellous day. Sunny and warm at 0 degrees C. It was the perfect day to get outside – and most of the people in the City where I live agreed. 

I had been waiting to go and visit the chickadees, and it was ‘almost’ the perfect day. The parks department decided to trim all the trails at the Chickadee Walk at Bird’s Hill Provincial Park for the cross-country skiers. As a result, the hundreds of Chickadees were right up by the entrance at the parking lot waiting for seed. They are so tame that the birds land on your hands, arms, and heads! There were also Red-breasted Nuthatches, and a quick drive through the country meant seeing some soaring hawks and owls. 

Close by is a place that I have visited since I returned to Manitoba more than two decades ago. Pineridge Hollow as built on the site of an old quarry. It was originally a small restaurant serving a locally sourced menu and a small gift shop with a petting zoo. It has grown over the years to become a destination about half an hour’s drive outside of my city. There is now a ‘village’ – a dozen or more shops full of marvellous things, including an old-fashioned grocery. 

To expand their operation, they built the Village – parallel shops selling local produce, a bakery, a coffee shop, and clothing. I was surprised at how busy everything was, but we longed to get out in the winter, and today was the perfect day. The roads were good; there was no snow or wind, and our hands didn’t freeze if we didn’t wear gloves.

Many families and couples were milling around the property, visiting the goats and chickens, tasting the cheese and meats, and sipping hot chocolate by the numerous outdoor fire pits. It was fantastic. What a nice boost.

The cats have been fantastic. Hugo Yugo sees the vet on Wednesday, and I think Dr Green will be in for a shock. E23 has nothing on this darling ginger cat in terms of growing overnight. It is shocking. I can’t wait to see how much Hugo Yugo weighs.

Once I got home, all the bird news was good except for the egg at NEFL. We can’t complain, and Gabby and Beau will move forward. Hopefully, next year will be a success for them.

The first egg of the osprey season has landed on the Achieva Credit Union nest in St Petersburg. Diane looked like she was ‘thinking about something’ since Saturday morning and that egg arrived 1421:57. 

I am so excited. Little ones are arriving the first week in March!!!!!!

While we dream of ospreys at Achieva, Gil is 105 days old and Brad is 103 days old at Port Lincoln today. They could disperse anytime OR maybe, because they are male, they will hang around Port Lincoln like Ervie.

Gil was on the nest when Dad flew in with the first fish of the day at 0816. Brad was hot on his tail!

I don’t think that Gil is going to save anything for Brad.

No fear. Dad flew in at 1241 with another fish and this time Brad was on the nest and got it! Don’t you love how they do a toe dance like Mum when they see that fishy dinner arriving?

PLO has posted some tracking data.

This is Giliath who is following adults to their favourite fishing spots.

“Ervie continues to do laps of the Bay. He forages at Point Boston quite a bit and seems to return to the wharf to roost.” (PLO)

‘MP’ sends news that the second chick has hatched at the John Bunker Sands Wetlands on Sunday. Congratulations Mum and Dad. Oh, let us all hope that things go well and we have two fledglings this year from the nest. That would be splendid. It was a dual feeding before bedtime for the duo.

Lady Deeagle has the two getting a feeding! I understand the need for the deep nest. Just look where it is located but, a camera looking down would be helpful!

Great capture at the nest by ‘AE’. Thank you! Were they celebrating the arrival of Dad with that magnificent fish? or alerting to an intruder? or both?

Jackie and Shadow have their second egg of the season. Congratulations. We are into hard incubation with an eaglet expected the same time as the osplets at Achieva.

There were constant intruders at the SW Florida nest of F23 and M15 as caught on video by SK Hideaways. Just listen to that alarming.

E23 is sleeping and eating and growing. Just in case those sub-adults come back and threaten her little one, F23 is in the nest tonight with her baby. M15 got himself an amazing mate!

All seems to be well at Captiva. ’A’ writes: “CE10 and CE11 spent the day eating and eating and eating. There were TEN feedings during the day. Seriously. Ten. These are not hatchlings. They are growing up so fast, and with ten feedings a day, they are going to be massive fledglings! Connie and Clive continue to astonish me. They are amazing parents. Absolutely amazing. Right up there with M15 and F23. Connie in particular has been the most devoted of mums, while Clive provides so well for his family.”

Poor Gabby. She wants to be a Mum. And there were two sub-adult intruders today – they were gorgeous. Jasper and Rocket?

The new couple at Anna and Louis’s nest (KNF-E1) appear to be serious. They are bringing in nesting materials.

So what is happening at the WRDC? Well, it looks like all of the fish that was provided when the nest was cleaned and that huge fish that Rose brought in, is now gone. ’H’ reports that it is windy and that the fishing might be very difficult again. ”Now, it seems that they may be having trouble fishing again.  It was quite windy on Sunday, and neither parent brought prey to the nest.  Yesterday, Ron was hungry and ate some of the ladyfish and tilapia, but he did provide two very nice long meals of the fish for R6.  R6 was fed 7 times, but two of those meals consisted of fish scraps.” ’H’ provides a photo of the pellet that R6 cast Monday morning. 

And then when everyone was worrying, three big fish came to the nest! The times were: 7:06:51 Rose; 7:10:16 Ron; 8.52.14 Ron.

Tears of joy all around for this lovely eagle family that was so hungry.

At Decorah North, DNF is really finishing off that nest. Are they ready for eggs?

There is no egg at Moorings Park yet. Perhaps next week!

SE31 appears to have set off on their life journey. Lady and Dad have visited the nest to give it a good check – maybe before they head to Goat Island for a vacation.

LGK has returned home – quickly – to feed the Royal Cam chick! What a turnaround…it is hard to stay away once the little one arrives. How sweet.

Been wondering about what Challenger is doing today? Don’t know who Challenger is? For both, check out this video.

On the Cornell Campus, Big Red and Arthur were both spotted.

‘SP’ sent me the news of Marri being seen at Orange. She has not left! How wonderful.

Kielder Forest is excited. One of their fledglings from 2020 has been sighted by Jean-marie Dupart in Senegal!

A-wonderful-sightingDownload

We love our birds and we participate in bird counts. Is there anything else we can do to help alleviate the threats to their existence? More than 600 million birds are estimated to have been lost in the UK in the last four decades. That is shocking. I wonder what it is in North America. So what is causing this? And believe me, the farming practices in the UK are not dissimilar to those in NA and other parts of Europe.

“Nor is it hard to trace the main cause of this loss of birdlife. As the RSPB has made clear, intensive farming practices, particularly the increased use of pesticides and fertilisers, have been the main drivers of most bird population declines in the UK since the end of the Second World War. The fact that farming could affect all birds, even those in inner cities and suburbia, may seem unlikely.

However, almost three-quarters of the UK is made up of farmland. What happens there affects birds in all habitats. In effect, our urban and suburban avian populations are overspills from the countryside. It would therefore be tempting to blame farmers for this unsettling state of affairs and press for quick measures to cut farm yields. Biodiversity loss would be slowed and carbon emissions cut. However, such rapid impositions would be risky.”

The-Observer-view-on-Britains-Big-Garden-Birdwatch-take-pleasure-in-counting-birds-but-dont-ignoDownload

Thank you so much for being with me for a quick run around some of the nests to see what is happening. Take care. See you soon!

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, photos, chat rolls, and streaming cams that helped me to write my blog today: ’A, Geemeff, H, J, MP, SP’, Bird’s Hill Provincial Park Songbirds, Pineridge Hollow and The Village, Achieva Credit Union, PLO, John Bunker Sands Wetlands Eagle Cam, Lady Deeagle, FOBBV, SK Hideaways, SW Florida Eagle Cam, Window to Wildlife, NEFL-AEF, WRDC, Raptor Resource Project/Explore, Moorings Park, Se McGregor, AEF, Lady Hawk, @CornellHawks, Kielder Ospreys, The Guardian, and Charles Sturt University Falcon Cam Chat.

All is well in Bird World…Sunday

22 October 2022

Good Morning Everyone,

Skies with clouds ranging from the softest grey down of the newborn osplet to the charcoal-espresso band under its eye graced the skies of southern Manitoba on Saturday. The sun poked itself out to cheer us up on several occasions. It was nippy, and a glance at the neighbourhood had people scurrying to get their plants inside for the winter and last-minute clean-ups on the gardens. Did they not hear? Leave the Leaves!

The songbirds continue to flood the feeders as they migrate through our province. Crossbills today, along with Pine Siskins and Dark-eyed Juncos. The Blue Jays might stay all winter along with the House Sparrows. The Crows were flying around, but the greatest number of birds overhead were Ring-billed Gulls late this afternoon.

It is 6 degrees C at 1800. Damp. Cold. Grey. Dreary. I do not know where Hope and Missey are but Calico is cuddled up in a pile of blankets.

The girls have been so tranquil that you do not know they are even about unless one or the other -or all -decide they are ‘starving’. Pleasant isn’t quite the word. Bliss. Is it possible that the pheromone diffuser works this well? There has not been a growl or a hiss or anything uncivilised. Unbelievable. I had so worried about Missey. She was just getting herself sorted after losing her best friend, Lewis, and Calico began being aggressive. It is all over. So happy. Hoping that they might become ‘window buddies’ sometime in the future.

Hope loves cuddling with Mamma. Mamma loves her blank. Apologies for the low quality of the image, but I raced to grab the phone, afraid they would move. Hope has learned how to pose when she sees the camera!!!!!!!!!!!

Sleepy time.

Hope decided she wanted to help write the blog.

The reintroduction of the White-tailed Eagle into Scotland was no small feat. One of the primary movers and shakers was John Love, who recently passed away. Here is a guest blog written for Mark Avery by Love in August of 2023 about the project.

What a remarkable man. I met and chat with him many years ago when I was a visiting artist at Hospitalfield near Dundee. Hospitalfield (yes, it is a strange name) was the first art school in the UK. Beautiful Manor House and gardens. It was a joy to be there working on projects related to the environment with other artists from around the world. It was also good to have some free time to meet people who were important to Scotland’s conservation efforts, like John Love.

Guest-blog-–-The-SEA-EAGLE-was-its-extinction-justified-by-John-A.-Love-–-Mark-AveryDownload

Roy Dennis has some good podcasts. Check them out if you want to learn about some of the reintroductions in Scotland – including those that John Love worked on.

Podcasts-Roy-Dennis-Wildlife-FoundationDownload

Guess who woke up hungry at Port Lincoln?

‘A’ reports about the 21st: “At Port Lincoln, there are 10 feedings recorded on the Obs Board, from two fish, starting with a good feeding from yesterday’s leftover fish at 06:34. Dad brought in a fresh fish (medium, headless) at 08:15 and the third (a zebra fish, medium) at 14:17. Giliath ate at all 10 feedings, the younger osplet at eight. I watched a couple of feedings (especially the one from 14:18) and was again impressed at how evenly mum distributed the fish between the two. Both are holding their heads up and eating well. The younger is able to see better and its grabs at the food are more successful. It is also dealing better with the size of the bites, although both osplets generally end up with faces covered in fish. At least they can snack off each other at the end of the feeding!” 

Note-Dad brought in four fish! He is upping his game as the chicks need more food! Here are the feedings.

Heidi caught the breakfast. The chicks were ravenous. A great feeding.

Chicks are hungry!

The feeding times, etc for the first part of Sunday at the PLO barge. We need more fish!!!!!!!!!!! As noted above, Dad brought in 3 more fish. Excellent.

The two osplets at Orange are pondering their big feet and trying to use them to walk around the scrape. Pin feathers are definitely in!

Dr Cilla Kinross, the head researcher on peregrine falcons at Charles Sturt University and principal responsible for the scrape that is currently used by Diamond and Xavier, has a recent paper published on falcon breeding behaviour.

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‘A’ sent a link to the interview with Dr Cilla Kinross.

https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/nights/audio/2018911726/famous-falcon-family-livestream-enthralls-bird-lovers.

The sea eagles, SE 31 and 32 are flying back and forth from the nest tree to the tree that supports the camera. Adults continue to bring food to the nest for the hungry pair. I am holding my breath.

‘A’ remarks, “At WBSE, both eaglets had a good breakfast, then spent the morning exploring the outermost reaches of the nest tree. At this stage, we cannot see either, so they are either high and/or wide in the nest tree or exploring nearby. We may have to wait until food is delivered to the nest for them to show themselves. Otherwise, we wait for this evening to see who is sleeping in or near the nest. It is a really bad time for the second camera to give up the ghost, as it was extremely useful for seeing those parts of the nest tree we are currently most interested in – its outer reaches.”

What a beauty.

‘A’ puts it right – it is an egg race and who will win. “It is an egg race – the nests and the eagle couples seem ready to go at E-1, E-2 and SWFL. I haven’t watched Superbeaks, but they’re pretty much sorted there as well. I am unsure what the usual egg-laying calendar is like for those particular nests, and I wonder whether the eggs might be laid earlier if temperatures are expected to be high again this summer. I suspect the birds that don’t work that out fairly fast will not raise successful broods in future seasons. Anna and Louis were also working on their nest this morning, with no sign of Anna’s injury. She is landing without difficulty, putting normal weight on the leg and foot, and having no trouble manoeuvring large sticks into position. (Like all eagle females, she is very particular about stick placement). Louis/Anna and Alex/Andria look very healthy, as do their partnerships. These are experienced couples and appear to be progressing smoothly into their breeding season. The same is true at SWFL with M15 and F23. The only concern remains NEFL, where we are waiting with bated breath to see whether V3 will master mating this year. He and Gabby were on the nest today, mid-afternoon, and they are perched together at the lumber yard again tonight. Both look healthy, and their bond appears strong. There is just one more piece of the puzzle to fall into place. Talons crossed.”

M15 is determined to have the highest crib rails in any nest! He is also checking out the nest bowl. It is exciting to see him begin a new life with a new mate. Can’t wait to see these two as parents.

Smitty and Bella were working on the NCTC nest on Saturday. Smitty returns after being away for a day shy of a month. Tears.

Eagle Country is live. Abby and Blazer have returned after Hurricane Ian and they are working on their nest.

Gabby and V3 were up early working on their nest.

In his Saturday Tour at Montenzuma, Wildlife Drive, Sapsucker Woods and the Cornell Campus, Ferris Akel spotted Big Red! So nice to see you, Big Red!

These are the two surviving osplets at Osprey House Environment Centre in Australia. Total juvenile plumage!

The ospreys in Australia are Eastern Ospreys and they do not migrate.

In West Africa, Jean-marie Dupart is counting the UK and European Ospreys that spend their winter in Senegal and The Gambia.

A twenty-six-year-old Red Kite. Sadly the bird was found injured and due to its age, it was euthanised. Gosh, I hope someone doesn’t ‘put me down’ just because I am old and injured!!!!!!

Old-aged-Red-Kite-found-in-Carmarthenshire-BirdGuidesDownload

Thank you so much for being with me today. Take care of yourselves. Stay safe!

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, articles, blogs, articles, videos, and streaming cams that helped me to write my blog today: ‘A, H, Sassa Bird’, Mark Avery Blog, Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation, PLO, Heidi Mc, Charles Sturt Falcon Cam, Corella, Karen Leng, RNZ, Sydney Sea Eagle Cam, Se McGregor, Lady Hawk, NCTC, Eagle Country, Ferris Akel, Osprey House EC, Jean-Marie Dupart, and Bird Guides.

Rose and Ron bonding…Friday in Bird World

13 January 2022

Good Morning Everyone,

Here it is, Friday the 13th. I wonder how many people reading this are superstitious?

On Thursday afternoon, I put on the heavy coat and took out the camera and battery, warmest boots, scarf, toque and headed out to the nature centre. It was -12 degrees C with only a 4 kph wind and 84% humidity. Damp. It was a lovely day in the forest and a few friends were around the feeders.

Several Red Squirrels were running about enjoying the peanuts knocked down from the feeders by the birds or another squirrel ‘friend’.

‘Squirrel Friend’ in action!

A sweet little female Downy Woodpecker enjoying the suet. I love feeding suet in the winter because, unlike peanuts and Black Oil seed, have to be cleared up regularly.

The Black-capped Chickadees are simply precious. They flit about taking one seed, fly to a branch, open and eat it and fly back to get another – all day long.

What a treat it was to see a White-breasted Nuthatch.

Merlin Sound ID alerted me to a Yellow Flicker in the area but I did not see it. The deer were not around today near the hide.

Making News:

It is easy to worry about our favourite feathered families with the heavy rains and floods that have been happening in California (and at other places in the US and around the world). That makes it so much of a relief to see that Annie and her new male friend are at The Campanile and are safe.

They are putting sat pads on Ospreys in Senegal! It seems that the people in Africa are as curious about where their ospreys go to breed as we are to find out where they winter. This is just grand.

Creating new wetlands is a good thing.

If you missed The Flight of the Osprey presentations/shows/talks, Geemeff has reposted the links so that you can watch/hear:

The expectations are that Avian Flu will continue to kill domestic and wild birds. Are you noticing any shortage of eggs? Tests are going on now as duck hunting season is in full swing in places like California. The researcher in this article ” will deliver her samples to UC Davis, where lab personnel will test them first for avian flu in general and ultimately for the specific strain known as Goose/Guangdong (Gs/GD) lineage highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI). Gs/GD HPAI is the deadliest and most infectious bird flu ever to strike Europe or North America, according to wildlife epidemiologists. The strain ravages domestic poultry flocks and can sicken and kill more species of wild birds across a greater geographic area than any previous outbreak, leaving an unprecedented trail of death. So far, the virus has affected more than 52 million domestic poultry birds in the U.S. and has been tested for and confirmed in 4,362 wild birds across the country.” 

this-bird-flu-pandemic-is-terrible-and-strange-bay-natureDownload

The first eagle in SW Virgina confirmed to have bird flu. This year there could be some very serious hardships.

I was interviewed last week about the impact of war on wildlife. Today there is an article appearing in The Guardian about Hooded Crows around Babyn Yar near Kyiv. Keeping in mind that there has been so much destruction in Ukraine, it is a very interesting article to read.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/jan/12/country-diary-the-silently-screaming-ravine-is-now-filled-with-bird-chatter?CMP=share_btn_link

In the mailbox:

‘L’ send me the latest Audubon news that shows their lobbying of the federal government has included many of their concerns about the environment and wildlife. Thanks, ‘L’. Have a read:

https://www.audubon.org/news/recently-passed-federal-funding-package-makes-investments-natural-climate

‘A’ has noticed that Clive is bringing a lot of trout to Connie and CJ7. Where is the trout coming from? That is such an interesting question. Thank you for asking it, ‘A’. I am reminded of when Dylan has brought Brown Trout into the nest at Llyn Clywedog that he shares with Serena Blue 5F. Dylan could get them from the local Reservoir but often humans are there fishing. I was so impressed with John Williams who tracked Dylan in a round about way and discovered that Dylan will escort intruders up to 25 miles away from the nest and it seems he stops along the way back home to fish! So now, where does Clive get those trout? Believe it or not, Captiva is well known for its winter fishing which includes Trout. Fresh Water Fishing Advice said this, “Spotted seatrout fishing is good in Captiva year-round. The season to fish for spotted seatrout in the region is high between January and October. The best time of the year to catch spotted seatrout in the area is between April and June.”

Checking the Nests:

The two eaglets at Superbeaks are growing and growing and then growing some more. It is difficult to get a screen capture of both of them together so I was pleased about the first image. It is early morning and Pearl and Tico are waiting for a fish delivery and breakfast. Their crops are empty!

Tico is 34 days old and Pearl is 35 days old today.

It is not long until fish arrive on the nest and these two get fed til they are full to the brim.

It is a wonder they can bend over. I am very impressed with these parents, PePe and Muhlady.

The two eaglets at the Kistachie National Forest E-2 nest of Alex and Andria are nothing short of precious. So civil to one another.

It is possible that KNF-E1-03 will be an only eaglet this year. In fact, this chick could be from the second egg. No matter. It will thrive under the watchful eye of Louis and Anna.

17:42. Probably the last meal of the day for the wee eaglet. Some people love the little pink feet but I love those little wings and the peek at the tail appearing.

Tonya Irwin gives us a short video of Louis taking care of E1-03 Thursday morning. Louis is such a proud daddy.

Shadow saw the precious egg that Jackie laid at 1600 on Wednesday early Thursday morning. Tine 07:06:22. After this, he flew out and returned with a nice fish for Jackie.

Jackie does not want to begin hard incubation until she is sure the second egg is in the nest. Otherwise the eaglets would be too different in birth times and this could cause severe rivalry. But, Jackie also knows that she cannot leave the egg alone or the Crows will get it. Little Fiona came to the nest but Fiona will not bother the egg.

One good way is for Jackie to perch near the egg – or Shadow – protecting the nest should a predator arrive.

What a sweet look – a marvel. Jackie looking at that egg she has laid. Oh, let us all hope that this is a good year for our Big Bear Valley couple. They deserve it. What fantastic parents they were to Spirit.

Notice how Jackie is sleeping over the egg to protect it from any predators but it is not yet hard incubating so if there is a second egg, the eaglets will hatch closer together. What a brilliant idea to keep the Crows at bay.

The California news is already celebrating Jackie and Shadow’s first egg! Oh, how wonderful.

https://www.nbclosangeles.com/the-scene/the-first-egg-of-2023-arrives-for-big-bears-beloved-bald-eagles/3071805/?_osource=db_npd_nbc_knbc_eml_shr

Connie and Clive’s little one had a nice big crop today. There are lots of fish on that nest! Some of them are hidden. The little one looks fine despite some concerns over Connie eating more than she is feeding the chick. It does not look like the second egg will hatch. Like the KNF-E1 nest, it is possible that this chick was actually from the second egg.

Gabby and V3 were working on the nest this morning. He is rather handsome. I know he is not Samson but there are things about him that remind me of Samson – like his tight ‘jeans’.

HeidiMc caught Ron and Rose bonding in the WRDC nest in Miami yesterday. They are such a funny eagle couple! I love how Rose nibbles on Ron’s feathers. Oh, so sweet.

The beaking at the Southwest Florida nest of E21 and E22, kidlets of Harriet and M15, is not that bad. The problem is E22 who does seem to stare E21 right in the eye and then aim at him/her with its beak and then E21 shows 22 who is boss.

Look carefully. You are going to see black dots. Those are not bugs. The plumage is beginning to change. Yes, already. You will see the thermal down but you will also begin to see tiny black dots where the shafts of the feathers are emerging. You will also notice that the egg tooth is disappearing.

E22 you should never look 21 in the eye. Never!

For now, 21 is the oldest and is the boss. Just leave things alone.

A short clip from SK Hideaways showing E21 and 22 eating a meal and rather behaving. They do not always. E22 can still get rough.

It is raining in Fort Myers and Harriet is keeping the two wiggle worms underneath her!!!!!! M15 has a big rabbit on deck for dinner when it stops.

Indigo the beetle-slayer! and Diamond chaser. Indigo is so proud of his beetles. Just imagine what it will be like when he gets his first ‘real’ prey!!!!!!!!!!!!

There is lots of news and things happening in the world. It is hard to keep track of everything and report on all the birds. All of the hatched eagles at every nest appear to be doing just fine. That is wonderful news. Diane at the Achieva Osprey nest appears to be so much better on her her injured leg. She even flew off with a fish in that leg’s talon today. I do not think we will see any more chicks at Captiva or KNF-01. Keep watching as we have Berry College Eagles coming up and for all of the Royal Albatross fans, the pip on the Royal cam chick is about a fortnight away?

Thank you so very much for being with me. Please take care of yourselves. See you soon.

Thank you to the following for their questions, their tweets, their posts, videos, and streaming cams that make up my screen captures: ‘A’, ‘L’, Cal Falcons, SKHideaways and Cal Falcons, Project Tougoupeu FB, BBC Dorset, Geemeff, Bay Nature, L Doyle and Bald Eagles Live Nests and Cams, Audubon News, Superbeaks, KNF E3, KNF E1, Tonya Irwin and KNF-E1, FOBBV, NEFL-AEF, HeidiMc and SWFlorida Bald Eagles and D Pritchett, SWFlorida Bald Eagles and D Pritchett, SK Hideaway and SWFL Eagles and D Pritchett, and Elain and Charles Sturt Falcon Cam and Cilla Kinross.